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First time buyer, car needed for long commute

Hiya, I'm new to this forum and pretty new to cars in general. I'm 24 years old and I need to buy a car for a 40 mile commute (so that's 80 miles daily) from Manchester to Preston and then back again. Most of the commute will be on the motorway so I'll be needing a car that can handle long distance travel, but I also want quite a small car with good mpg, low tax and is reasonably cheap to run. The Toyota Aygo was a possibility but I think it may be that little bit too small for such a long daily commute.

I would greatly appreciate any advice!

EDIT: I'm aiming to get a second-hand car. I don't really have enough cash for anything new, heh.

Just avoid anything exotic- GTI, XR, Sport, all these add up to more costs. Spare parts for unusual cars are more expensive and harder to get. Stick to mainstream and think about who will look after it when it's yours.

Before you commit, get a quote for the insurance (put your mum or dad on as a named driver - it can reduce the premium). Do not buy an extended warranty. Do not pay the asking price. Consider carefully the cost of borrowing the money to pay for the car. Add up all the costs, interest, arrangement fees, and calculate the total cost of the car.

Thanks for the replies everyone! I have a bit more of a budget now as my parents have kindly agreed to provide some of the funds for buying it. I hear the Vauxhall Corsa (and Vauxhalls in general) tend to break down quite a lot - though my knowledge is based on just what my friends say. Any more suggestions would be grand, thanks!

Before you buy a car you should research it on a reputable site like honest john (don;t know if I'm allowed to say that on here - feel free to remove editor). That will tell you the overall quality of the car, reliability etc - do not just go on what other people are saying. Make a list of the cars that are reliable and within budget. Then check the insurance prices of each. That would be a decent strategy.

My wife and I both have long commutes. My wife does 120miles/day. She had an old banger so when it died we looked around a lot. We ended up with a pretty new VW Polo BlueMotion. She loves it. Through her work she was able to test drive quite a few small diesel's and this came out on top. Another option we looked at was the Kia Rio, which also rated well. The third choice was the Fiesta. I would avoid the Ka (too small), the Mitsubishi Mirage, the Peugeot's and the Vauxhall's! Motorways can be dangerous so go for safety!